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Several of NCC’s Impact initiatives drew national attention this week, including the Read-In slated for Saturday, June 17, when congregations are encouraged to meet and share their favorite books to read aloud, silently, or together in advocacy for the written word. At a time when many states are banning books, the NCC is issuing a strenuous call to action in defense of books. “Our written words are too important to be banned or ignored,” said Rev. Dr. Tammy Wiens, NCC’s Director of Christian Education and Faith Formation. “In speaking out to legislators and church leaders to resist the banning of books, let us also call upon the Name of the Lord whose own Word animates all of life,” she added.
Wiens and her colleague, Andee Zetterbaum, Founder and Director of World in Prayer (www.worldinprayer.org), co-wrote “A Prayer in Defense of Books,” as a companion to the Read-In and it is available as a downloadable PDF for congregations to use as a bulletin insert.
Many congregations that are unable to sponsor a Read-In this weekend have contacted NCC asking to use the prayer at an alternate time. The file is available for download on NCC’s website. Additionally, the Presbyterian Outlook, the national magazine of the PC(USA), is featuring the prayer on its website as well as in the July print edition. | |
NCC Impact Week—Journey to Jubilee Reparative Justice | |
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The Journey to Jubilee six-week Reparative Justice Bible Study continues on Tuesday, June 20, 2023, as part of NCC's Impact Week and will continue every Tuesday thereafter through July 18, at 7:00 p.m. EDT virtually on NCC’s YouTube Channel. Participants are also encouraged to join the Bible Study via Zoom for a more interactive experience with Bible study leaders and facilitators. Harvard Kennedy School’s Partnership with the National Council of Churches produced this effective resource to aid congregations in learning about reparative justice. Download the Reparative Justice Bible Study toolkit to use in your congregation. Download the Toolkit Here. | |
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NCC IMPACT WEEK—National Council of Churches Announces Juneteenth Reparations March | |
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Participants are encouraged to register here to attend the march. 10:00 a.m. March Begins at Martin L. King, Jr. Memorial 11:00 a.m. Rally at Lafayette Park 12:00 p.m. Juneteenth Jubilee | |
NCC Sponsors Juneteenth March for Justice We Need More Than a Holiday | |
“…the same Lord is Lord of all and richly is generous to all who call on him.” Romans 10:12 (NSRVUE) • • • • • • • "We are fighting for a different world, and we are building new muscles to do so." Alicia Garza, "The Purpose of Power: How We Come Together When We Fall Apart"
The National Council of Churches (NCC) will celebrate Juneteenth with a March for Justice on Monday, June 19, 2023, at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial (see graphic above for details) and walk to Lafayette Square in front of the White House for a rally at 11:00 a.m. The march closes out NCC’s Impact Week, a series of virtual and in-person events to provide resources and personal engagement on a variety of issues, including Mental Health, International Humanitarian Crises, and Gun Violence to Reparations.
“The Juneteenth celebration is an opportunity for us to focus on the substantive work of racial justice, racial healing, and reconciliation,” said NCC Governing Board Chair, Bishop Teresa Jefferson-Snorton. “It’s a holiday we choose to celebrate even when faced with persistent discrimination."
“We celebrate that the news of freedom was slow to come, but it did finally arrive. It gives us hope that the promises made to our ancestors, which are also slow in coming, will be kept,” said NCC’s President and General Secretary, Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie.
The question then becomes, How will America celebrate the holiday and is the holiday enough?
Juneteenth or June 19, celebrates the day in 1865 when U.S. General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas to ensure that the state’s 250,000 enslaved persons would be freed—more than two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed by President Abraham Lincoln. Gen. Granger read General Order No. 3: “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.” Celebrations broke out among the enslaved, now free, and Juneteenth was born.
Juneteenth became a national holiday on the heels of the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. At the time, there was hope that this would become a renewed national effort to seriously deal with racial injustice. Instead, 10 Black people were massacred at Tops Supermarket in East Buffalo, New York, hate-fueled crimes escalate, and there are fewer voting rights protections for African Americans today than at any other time since the mid-1960’s.
Opal Lee, now called the “Grandmother of Juneteenth,” campaigned tirelessly for years for June 19 to become a national holiday. She wrote letters, made speeches, and built relationships with allies. The former educator-activist journeyed to Washington DC, annually, when those in their 90’s wouldn’t dream to take on such a mission.
It was a struggle to obtain the more than one million signatures needed to petition Congress to establish the federal holiday, but Mrs. Lee was determined. We must do likewise. We must have the same determination to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with our God for social change (Micah 6:8)! We are all created in the image of God. The Lord is Lord of all and is gracious to all who call upon him (Romans 10:12).
How will America celebrate Juneteenth in the wake of racial violence targeting African Americans, especially African-American men? How will America celebrate Juneteenth while holding its breath, awaiting the next Supreme Court decision that could seriously maim or eradicate Affirmative Action? How will America celebrate Juneteenth in the wake of the attack on literary freedom—the freedom to write, the freedom to read, and the freedom to learn? How will we celebrate Juneteenth, when worshippers are not safe in their sanctuaries nor school children in their classrooms because of gun violence?
Each generation must build upon the foundations of the justice work of previous generations. As Congressman John Lewis writes in Across That Bridge: Life Lessons and a Vision for Change: “Ours is the struggle of a lifetime, or maybe even many lifetimes, and each one of us in every generation must do our part.”
Opal Lee did her part. Now we must do ours. We need more than a holiday! We need a serious national reckoning on racial injustice and racial disparities in mass incarceration. We need the passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, and a federal commission to study reparations. This includes a national commitment to ensure that the inhumane treatment of persons of African descent and other ethnic minorities, including but not limited to, creating policy and praxis that block any return to neo-Jim Crowism, domestic terrorism, and enslavement.
It will take each of us to ensure that all are free…in the land of the free and the home of the brave. | |
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Bishop McKenzie at Capitol Hill with Congresswoman Lucy McBath (2nd, right), NCC Chief Operating Officer Rev. Dr. Leslie Copeland-Tune, and NCC Civic Engagement and Outreach Consultant Rev. Stephen Green | |
Bishop McKenzie Speaks at Capitol Hill On Tuesday, June 13, NCC President and General Secretary Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie joined Congresswoman Lucy McBath, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark, Assistant Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, and House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force Chairman Rep. Mike Thompson for a press conference with gun violence prevention leaders, survivors, and advocates to call upon Republican leaders to bring several pieces of gun violence prevention legislation to a vote in the House of Representatives.
During the event, Congresswoman McBath announced that she introduced a discharge petition for the Assault Weapons Ban of 2023. In all, three discharge petitions were introduced, with Congressman Mike Thompson introducing the discharge petition on the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, and Congressman Jim Clyburn introducing the discharge petition on the Enhanced Background Checks Act, which he said would have saved the lives of those murdered at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, S.C., eight years ago. The procedural move would force a vote on the bills, which have been stalled in the House of Representatives.
Bishop McKenzie provided a faith perspective during the press event, applauding the efforts of the members of Congress who displayed “uncommon courage” in pushing for the enactment of sensible gun legislation.
“We need to stand up for worshipers, for shoppers, for dancers, for Americans, and for our school children,” said Bishop McKenzie in her comments.
Pointing to the faith of the Syrophoenician woman (Mark 7:24–30) who advocated for her child’s deliverance before Jesus, Bishop McKenzie offered these words of encouragement, “We will not give up! We will persist like that woman, and at the end, she was applauded for her faith and her prayers were answered. We, the people, serve a God of love, serve a God who is on the side of the oppressed, and we serve a God of peace and a God of justice. Come now and let peace and justice reign!”
Other speakers included Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Abigail Spanberger, Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost, Rep. Pat Ryan, Dr. Joseph V. Sakran from This Is Our Lane and Vice-Chair of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence Board, and Jordan Gomes, Sandy Hook Survivor and Newtown Action Alliance.
To watch the full press conference, click here.
NCC urges member communions, partners, and supporters to contact your member of Congress (click here) and tell them to sign on to the discharge petitions for the Assault Weapons Ban of 2023 (H.R. 698), the Bipartisan Background Checks Act (H.R. 715), and the Enhanced Background Checks Act (H.R. 2403). | |
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Health and Wellness Taskforce Kicks Off NCC Impact Week | |
NCC’s Health and Wellness Taskforce kicked off NCC’s Impact week with Mental Health Monday: Assisting Trauma Survivors. Dr. Kathryn Jacobsen, Rev. Dr. Miriam J. Burnett, Dr. A’Shellarien Addison, and Rev. Mishca R. Russell-Smith led the hour-long session.
Bishop Vashti McKenzie and NCC Governing Board Chair Bishop Teresa Jefferson-Snorton opened the session with greetings and prayer, after which the mental health professionals engaged in an informative conversation about healing from traumatic experiences.
Professor, author, and global health expert, Dr. Jacobson served as group moderator. She began the session by noting that the World Health Organization (WHO) defines health as, “A complete state of physical, mental, and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” She also noted that spiritual health can be included as another component of good health.
Dr. Addison shared information on the “sacred space” that faith-filled trauma survivors have between knowing that God is with them and allowing God to be with them. She acknowledged that members of the faith community tend not to acknowledge that it is okay not be okay when it comes to mental health. “Faith-filled trauma survivors create reasons to stay stuck, which fuels resistance to seeking help, yet faith creates the space for healing release,” she shared.
Rev. Russell-Smith guided session participants healing through guided imagery exercises. She shared a visualization exercise, which advised participants to create a safe space for themselves. As they go through the process, she also suggested they “enjoy the safe space you are in.”
The visualization is a “grounding technique” that Dr. Russell-Smith uses as a part of the treatment plan with trauma survivors in her work as a CPE chaplain.
The full session can be viewed on NCC’s Facebook page here. | |
NCC Impact Week Includes "Watch, Pray, Act" | |
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On Friday, June 16, NCC hosted a powerful “Watch, Pray, Act” Prayer Call for Victims of Gun Violence on the eve of remembering the murder and domestic terror attack against the Emanuel Nine in Charleston, S.C. The one-hour virtual call, which focused on remembering victims of gun violence and their families, included NCC denominational leaders and partners as part of NCC’s Impact Week.
The call provided a safe and sacred space for participants to remember lives that were lost to gun violence and to pray for survivors and their families. While NCC recognizes that thoughts and prayers are not enough, the Prayer Call was grounded in our faith, which teaches us that prayer strengthens and fortifies us for the journey and the work ahead.
Participants in the call offered moving prayers for peace, justice, and for the strength and courage to act to end gun violence in our nation. NCC President and General Secretary Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie opened the call with prayer and later powerfully read the names of the Emanuel Nine. NCC Governing Board members—His Eminence Archbishop Vicken Aykazian, Diocesan Legate and Director of the Ecumenical Office of the Diocese, Armenian Church of America, and Rev. Eddy Aleman, General Secretary, Reformed Church in America—led meaningful and insightful prayers during the call.
Rev. Dr. Nestor Gomez, who is also a member of NCC’s Governing Board from the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), lifted Psalm 91:1-6 in English and Spanish, providing scriptural grounding for the Prayer Call. Minister Denise Walden, Executive Director of Voice Buffalo, who has been working tirelessly in Buffalo, NY, to bring healing, hope, restoration, and justice to the city following the mass shooting at Tops supermarket, also participated on the call, leading a heartfelt and profound prayer for justice.
The Prayer Call was moderated by NCC Chief Operating Officer Rev. Dr. Leslie Copeland-Tune, who read the NCC’s Resolution on Rampant Gun Violence and Mass Shootings that was adopted by the Governing Board in May. She also shared other resources on gun violence prevention from member communions and partners. Rev. Adwoa Rey, NCC’s Advocacy Consultant, introduced a video by Congressman Jim Clyburn that discussed the Emanuel Nine and the discharge petition for the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, which would close the loophole on background checks that allowed the Charleston gunman to purchase the weapons he used in the massacre at Emanuel. Rev. Rey also provided a call to action for ways to advocate for sensible gun reform measures to be passed.
The Prayer Call is available for viewing on NCC’s YouTube channel. | |
Panel Discusses International Crises | |
As part of the National Council of Churches’ Impact Week, during which we’ve been looking at issues and concerns to better understand how we, as church communities and individual church members, can do our part to make a difference, a webinar was held to highlight a few of the international issues that are of concern to the member churches of the organization, among the many global issues with which we engage. The webinar featured Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon, the executive director of Churches for Middle East Peace; Dr. Pavlo Smytsnyuk, a fellow at Princeton University; and Mr. Rick Santos, President and CEO of Church World Service. The session was moderated by Dr. Tony Kireopoulos, Associate General Secretary at the NCC.
Rev. Cannon discussed the situation in Yemen, so dire that it has resulted in one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, which is at the same time one of the most neglected in terms of media attention, government action, and humanitarian assistance. She also talked about the ongoing conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which has escalated in recent years and, by many accounts, can be characterized as genocidal in its intended impact on the Armenian Christian population. Finally, she focused our attention on the continuing challenges for the Palestinian community in the Holy Land – such as violence, settlement expansion, and refugees – a problem that is only exacerbated by the ongoing domestic political tensions in Israel. For those viewing the webinar, she urged vigilance in terms of advocacy and peacebuilding, humanitarian assistance, and ongoing education on the issues.
Dr. Smytsnyuk described the ongoing horror that is the war in Ukraine, and the global implications that have resulted from Russia’s unjust invasion of its neighbor. He also brought our attention to the challenges faced by the churches in Ukraine, from the struggle to remain pacifist to the effort to provide a safe haven for the countless refugees. One point of light in the midst of the continuing darkness, he described how many of the refugees were indeed hosted by churches, and that in fact, the assistance to refugees was an ecumenical effort that revealed the unity of the churches in the singular purpose of helping those who are suffering from this unjust war. Looking ahead, he urged the churches to remain prophetic in the wider call for peace, and in the everyday effort to reduce two tragic outcomes of this war, namely the hate and blame that have developed among neighbors.
Mr. Santos discussed the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria. Noting CWS’ partnership with two other humanitarian aid organizations, International Orthodox Christian Charities and ACT Alliance, he lifted up the stages of response that pertain to humanitarian assistance. First, in the short term, is lifesaving, which takes place in the first couple of weeks after a tragedy; second, in the intermediate term, is stabilization, so that a society can start functioning again; and third is long-term rebuilding, which can take years upon years. He also pointed out the irony that most funds are raised in the initial period, even though the most assistance needed will come in the years to come over the long haul. With this in mind, he urged churches and individuals to continue being generous with providing resources for the continued response.
He also talked about other situations worldwide, particularly the plight of refugees—from the Mideast, Africa, Asia, and Latin America—which currently number more than 100 million around the globe, and how all those seeking refuge in the US arrive mostly through the southern US border. He also pointed out that, in the future, climate change will lead to a further increase in the number of refugees. In response to this, he reminded the church communities and individual church members that their main task is to advocate for refugees, and thereby live their faith commitment to welcome the stranger. | |
NCC Remembers Dr. Agnes Abuom, | |
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Photo; (L-R) Bishop Mary Ann Swenson, former Vice-moderator of the WCC Central Committee and retired episcopal leader in the United Methodist Church with Dr. Agnes Abuom, immediate past Moderator of the Central Committee, and Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie, President/General Secretary, National Council of Churches. Photo courtesy NCC | |
“If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.” Romans 14:8, NRSVue
Washington, DC—The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) joins the global ecumenical community in mourning the passing of peacemaker Dr. Agnes Abuom, immediate past moderator of the World Council of Churches. The dedicated and enthusiastic ecumenist was the first African and first female elected moderator of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches. She died last month at the age of 73 in her native Kenya after a short illness. A scholar, peacemaker, development professional, and organizer, her Christian activism emerged at an early age. While studying at the University of Nairobi she was forced to flee Kenya to Sweden because of persecution. She later returned and was imprisoned. She earned a doctorate from Uppsala University in missiology. Her thesis was titled, “The Part of Nongovernmental Agencies in Advancement.” Dr. Abuom was president of the World Council of Churches from 1999 to 2006. She was also closely associated with the All Africa Conference of Churches, the National Council of Churches of Kenya, and Religions for Peace. To honor her work and years of dedication, as well as her tireless efforts in the ecumenical movement, NCC acknowledged Dr. Abuom with the President’s Award for Excellence in Faithful Leadership in 2019. “In 2018, Dr. Abuom shared her dream for the world in an interview reflecting on the 70th anniversary of the WCC,” said Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie, NCC President and General Secretary. “She said, ‘I also dream of a world where every man and woman’s dignity will be upheld. A world where every person’s basic needs will be secured. I dream of a world where there will be no racial discrimination, negative ethnicity, and xenophobia as well as related violence. Indeed, a world free of sexual and gender violence.’” Dr. Abuom not only dreamed, but also raised her voice and used her influence for a world where people have a right to move freely without being profiled or mistreated. In 2016, she told the WCC Central Committee, “The witness of many in the forefront of struggles demands that we move away from the culture of conferences and statements and begin to get engaged in actions that nurture hope and alternatives. There is room in the gospel for disagreement but there is no room for disengagement.” Her voice may be silent now, but her words continue to call for actions that nurture hope and create alternatives. She will be missed when ecumenists gather but her legacy inspires younger generations to rise to the task of being peacemakers where there are wars and rumors of wars. Dr. Abuom’s work lives beyond her lifetime. NCC is grateful for the time we sojourned together. She belonged to the global community for but a little while, but she lived belonging to the Lord. May God comfort her family and the extended global family in ways that human efforts fail. | |
Religions for Peace Sponsors Webinar on | |
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Tuesday, June 27, 2023 • 2 PM to 3 PM ET Zoom registration is required but complimentary. Please click here to register.
Religions for Peace (RFP) USA is the largest and most broadly-based representative multi-religious forum in the United States, with participants from more than 50 religious communities, representing each of the major faith traditions. | |
Episcopal Church Sponsors "It's All About Love: A Festival for the Jesus Movement" | |
Join the Episcopal Church for “It’s All About Love,” a churchwide festival of worship, learning, community, and action for the Episcopal branch of the Jesus Movement, to be held Sunday, July 9 through Wednesday, July 12, at the Baltimore Convention Center. Register here. “It’s All About Love” is organized around three Jesus Movement festival “tents”: Evangelism, Racial Reconciliation, and Creation Care. Get ready for evening revival worship and daytime speakers, workshops, panels, and practice opportunities around the big tent themes. Stick with one tent or explore across the tents, following the themes of worship and liturgy, formation, justice and advocacy, leadership, preaching, stewardship, and youth and children. Featured speakers, preachers, and artists to include Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, President of the House of Deputies Julia Ayala Harris, Brian McLaren, the Rev. Mariama White-Hammon, Dr. Kwok Pui-lan, Sarah Augustine, Lilly Lewin, Dr. Catherine Meeks, the Very Rev. Canon Kelly Brown Douglas, the Rev. Winnie Varghese, Live Hymnal & Friends, and more! Lodging: Discounted room blocks have been reserved for participants near the Baltimore Convention Center | |
Friendship Press Releases Classic Titles | |
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Shop the Friendship Press Sale and Take an Extra 20% Off with code fp2023
Print copies can be ordered from the Friendship Press website or readers using Kindle can order on Amazon. | |
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The Racial Healing of America Revival and Bus Tour | |
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The ACU Carl Spain Center on Race Studies and Spiritual Action invites everyone to join them for the Racial Healing of America Revival and Bus Tour, July 9–17, 2023. The Racial Healing of America Revival and Bus Tour will serve as one form of direct spiritual action. It will publicly demonstrate that we are against violence and racial division by visually demonstrating that we are for racial healing.
The Bus Tour will bring together people of faith and goodwill from various ethnic backgrounds to publicly promote racial healing and biblical justice, and to advance social peace across America. The revival and bus tour will start in Dallas (TX), with stops in Memphis (TN), Birmingham (AL), Charleston (SC), and ending in Washington (DC). The revival services will include featured speakers and congregational singing in each city. Tour participants will visit the International African American Museum in Charleston and the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington.
Click here for event information and registration. | |
Register for March on Washington 60th Anniversary Event | |
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Rev. Al Sharpton, Founder and President of National Action Network; Arndrea Waters King, President, Drum Major Institute; and Martin Luther King, III, Chairman, Drum Major Institute enlist your participation in the 60th Anniversary of the March on Washington to be held August 26, 2023, in Washington, DC to mobilize the faith community across America, for "March on Washington Not a Commemoration, a Continuation!"
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Employment Opportunities | |
The Episcopal Church Office of Government Relations | |
Represents The Episcopal Church’s public policy positions to Congressional offices, U.S. government departments and agencies, and the broader policy community in Washington. Builds and maintains relationships with government officials to further the policy goals of The Episcopal Church. Serves as a resource for OGR and Episcopalians on a wide range of U.S. public policy issues, including developing a deep understanding of U.S. political context, and detailed knowledge of legislative and policy initiatives. Maintains flexibility to respond to emerging and priority needs and to develop new areas of legislative and policy expertise.
If you or someone you know would like to apply, please click here for more information. • • • • • • • Interfaith Alliance Seeks Policy and Advocacy Associate Interfaith Alliance is hiring a policy and advocacy associate to support our federal and state policy initiatives focused on religious freedom, fighting discrimination, and protecting democracy. The position description is attached and on the Interfaith Alliance website. |
Monday, June 19, 2023
NCC Newsletter – June 17, 2023
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